Coach Kosta Runjaic held a press conference ahead of his team’s match against Cagliari on Sunday. Here’s what he had to say:
Bouncing back after two losses
“Losing helps you grow. We won against Inter and we thought we’d go on winning, but every match is a different story. You always have to be focused and have the right set-up on the pitch. We’re a young team who are going through a development process, and losing is part of this process. We don’t like losing, but we have to accept it. We have a lot of potential and we work hard, which is what is needed for a team to grow. We must be more consistent and make sure that we have more wins than losses. We have to accept our losses; what’s important is that we know how to react. After our game against Milan, we had a solid performance against Palermo, then we lost again to Sassuolo. This goes to show that you can’t secure three points if you’re not focused and careful throughout the entire match. We made mistakes and we were punished. It wasn’t a bad performance, but on some occasions we made the wrong decisions. We could’ve equalised it in the second half, but we missed our chances. The match against Sassuolo belongs to the past. We’ve analysed the match and now we’re laser-focused on Cagliari. We must give it our all in front of our fans, we must have the right spirit and quality to secure three points.”
“Losing helps you grow. We won against Inter and we thought we’d go on winning, but every match is a different story. You always have to be focused and have the right set-up on the pitch. We’re a young team who are going through a development process, and losing is part of this process. We don’t like losing, but we have to accept it. We have a lot of potential and we work hard, which is what is needed for a team to grow. We must be more consistent and make sure that we have more wins than losses. We have to accept our losses; what’s important is that we know how to react. After our game against Milan, we had a solid performance against Palermo, then we lost again to Sassuolo. This goes to show that you can’t secure three points if you’re not focused and careful throughout the entire match. We made mistakes and we were punished. It wasn’t a bad performance, but on some occasions we made the wrong decisions. We could’ve equalised it in the second half, but we missed our chances. The match against Sassuolo belongs to the past. We’ve analysed the match and now we’re laser-focused on Cagliari. We must give it our all in front of our fans, we must have the right spirit and quality to secure three points.”
Bayo and Buksa
“[Vakoun] Bayo trained with the team. We need to use his energy smartly, but he’ll be available and he’s ready to play. He made an important contribution against Inter and showed that he can be a major asset for us. [Adam] Buksa trained, but not 100% of the time with the team. Now he has his mask and he will be available if we need him. Tomorrow we will decide whether to call him up or let him rest. At any rate, the operation went well and he’s fired up.”
“[Vakoun] Bayo trained with the team. We need to use his energy smartly, but he’ll be available and he’s ready to play. He made an important contribution against Inter and showed that he can be a major asset for us. [Adam] Buksa trained, but not 100% of the time with the team. Now he has his mask and he will be available if we need him. Tomorrow we will decide whether to call him up or let him rest. At any rate, the operation went well and he’s fired up.”
Sassuolo v Udinese analysis
“I re-examined all the plays in which Sassuolo caused us problems. We mustn’t underestimate our opponent: when they scored the first goal, we weren’t determined enough when defending and we conceded too easily against a team who’s fighting with the same goals as us. Then we played badly as a team on the second goal too. We’re working on these things; it’s a growth process and the match against Sassuolo now belongs to the past. We didn’t apply our playing philosophy and we were punished. I hope we’ll learn from our mistakes. We’re working on what needs to be improved and when we play against Cagliari, we’ll see if we’ve learned our lesson.”
“I re-examined all the plays in which Sassuolo caused us problems. We mustn’t underestimate our opponent: when they scored the first goal, we weren’t determined enough when defending and we conceded too easily against a team who’s fighting with the same goals as us. Then we played badly as a team on the second goal too. We’re working on these things; it’s a growth process and the match against Sassuolo now belongs to the past. We didn’t apply our playing philosophy and we were punished. I hope we’ll learn from our mistakes. We’re working on what needs to be improved and when we play against Cagliari, we’ll see if we’ve learned our lesson.”
Formation
“You always think about tactics, when you lose but also when you win. We want to play proactively and maintain a high defensive line, which is something we didn’t do against Milan, for example. We must also make fewer mistakes. The team must completely understand a formation before switching to another, but we don’t want to look for excuses related to the formation to justify our losses. We must improve and apply the basics of football on the pitch, especially during the defensive phase. We failed to do so in the past two matches and suffered the consequences. I hope we’ll learn from our mistakes. It’s a growth process and it takes time. This is what happens every year at Udinese because we lose some players and we get new ones we have to integrate. During the defensive phase the players have to get used to playing together in a certain way. On some occasions we defended well, but in several cases we could’ve done better and the opponent had nothing to do with it. We must remain focused throughout the entire match.”
“You always think about tactics, when you lose but also when you win. We want to play proactively and maintain a high defensive line, which is something we didn’t do against Milan, for example. We must also make fewer mistakes. The team must completely understand a formation before switching to another, but we don’t want to look for excuses related to the formation to justify our losses. We must improve and apply the basics of football on the pitch, especially during the defensive phase. We failed to do so in the past two matches and suffered the consequences. I hope we’ll learn from our mistakes. It’s a growth process and it takes time. This is what happens every year at Udinese because we lose some players and we get new ones we have to integrate. During the defensive phase the players have to get used to playing together in a certain way. On some occasions we defended well, but in several cases we could’ve done better and the opponent had nothing to do with it. We must remain focused throughout the entire match.”
Aiming for more consistent performance levels
“It’s not about one’s physical condition, but rather about focus and partly the opponent. In terms of experience and quality we don’t measure up to the league’s top teams. We’re a solid team that has potential, which must be harnessed by working hard every day. We must consider all the factors that lead to consistent performance levels. Many teams at our level struggle to be consistent. Our goal is to always win, and if we can’t win, we must at least secure one point. We are all angry about the match against Sassuolo, but it can happen to a team like Udinese, we must accept this. We are self-critical and we want to improve, but it takes time. The only solution to this is to work hard. We must play better against Cagliari.”
“It’s not about one’s physical condition, but rather about focus and partly the opponent. In terms of experience and quality we don’t measure up to the league’s top teams. We’re a solid team that has potential, which must be harnessed by working hard every day. We must consider all the factors that lead to consistent performance levels. Many teams at our level struggle to be consistent. Our goal is to always win, and if we can’t win, we must at least secure one point. We are all angry about the match against Sassuolo, but it can happen to a team like Udinese, we must accept this. We are self-critical and we want to improve, but it takes time. The only solution to this is to work hard. We must play better against Cagliari.”
Lovric
“[Sandi] Lovric has returned from his international commitments with an injury and he’s playing less. There’s a lot of competition in midfield. He has a lot of experience, he’s been here for a long time and it’s from players like him that we expect more. He’s training well. He’s not happy because he’s playing less, but that’s part of the game. He will certainly get his chances, I’m not sure whether that will be against Cagliari, as it depends on many factors. He can play well and help the team, which is what we need right now. We will grow as a team thanks to the performance of individual players, including Lovric and others who are playing even less. On Sunday, I expect to see our playing style, energy and the utmost focus throughout the entire match to try to secure those three points.”
“[Sandi] Lovric has returned from his international commitments with an injury and he’s playing less. There’s a lot of competition in midfield. He has a lot of experience, he’s been here for a long time and it’s from players like him that we expect more. He’s training well. He’s not happy because he’s playing less, but that’s part of the game. He will certainly get his chances, I’m not sure whether that will be against Cagliari, as it depends on many factors. He can play well and help the team, which is what we need right now. We will grow as a team thanks to the performance of individual players, including Lovric and others who are playing even less. On Sunday, I expect to see our playing style, energy and the utmost focus throughout the entire match to try to secure those three points.”
Zaniolo
“[Nicolo] Zaniolo is improving every day. He is playing differently compared to the beginning, but he still needs to work a lot. I like him because he’s very self-critical, maybe too self-critical. He clearly wants to make his contribution. We must be patient. He needs to fully learn our playing style, but he’s performed well. His overall performance against Sassuolo wasn’t all that bad, but it wasn’t not enough. You can also lose a game without a poor performance, so you always need to be focused. We know that we can also compete against teams like Inter by remaining focused throughout the game, which is something we didn’t always do against Sassuolo. My job is to make sure the team understand this. Over the week I’ve explained to them that I’m not happy and they’ve had the right attitude.”
“[Nicolo] Zaniolo is improving every day. He is playing differently compared to the beginning, but he still needs to work a lot. I like him because he’s very self-critical, maybe too self-critical. He clearly wants to make his contribution. We must be patient. He needs to fully learn our playing style, but he’s performed well. His overall performance against Sassuolo wasn’t all that bad, but it wasn’t not enough. You can also lose a game without a poor performance, so you always need to be focused. We know that we can also compete against teams like Inter by remaining focused throughout the game, which is something we didn’t always do against Sassuolo. My job is to make sure the team understand this. Over the week I’ve explained to them that I’m not happy and they’ve had the right attitude.”
Goglichidze
“[Saba] Goglichidze is in the same situation as Zaniolo. He’s improving every day and is training well. We’ll see who the starting XI will be for Sunday.”
“[Saba] Goglichidze is in the same situation as Zaniolo. He’s improving every day and is training well. We’ll see who the starting XI will be for Sunday.”